• Sunsilk- I was able to order one of each product sample, that’s 5 free samples, plus coupons! Order one of each HERE !

• Sunflower Seeds HERE . Just sign up.

• $5 G.C. (sent to email) to Kohl’s for signing up today.

• Kid’s Character Toothbrush. Sign up HERE for more info.

• Battery Powered Kids Toothbrush. Check it out HERE .

• Pure Minerals Sample . Go down to Lip Revival below and click on Details . Click on Register Now for Sample. Fill out the info. You will receive an email confirming registration. It will provide a link for you to choose which sample you want. During checkout it asks for a credit card number (even though your balance is $0.00). If you don’t want to give that info, call customer service and they will get the sample to you w/out a credit card number. (That’s what I did).

• Senseo Coffee Pods HERE .

• Maybelline Mineral Power Sample .

• Fiber One Cereal Sample .

• Gold Bond Lotion Sample .

The past three weeks I have been reading through a number of library books that I picked up on the subject of homemaking. Since I often feel that I know virtually nothing about homemaking and am trying to improve in this God-given role, I am on a hot pursuit to learn everything I can about it and have been devouring every book I can find on the topic.

I have found that is often hard to find good suggestions…even on the internet(!)…for good homemaking books. So…I thought I ought to do some quick reviews on these books for anyone who is looking for some good books on homemaking. So here they are!

Handbook for Christian Homemakers (by Edith Kilgo)

This was probably my favorite book of the five as it was the most down-to-earth, balanced and practical book that I had read. Edith Kilgo opens the book by emphasizing that no homemaking method is right for everyone and therefore, homemakers should not be concerned with what “So-and-so” is doing, but should be doing what is best for her own family - to create her own style and her own plan (sounds good to me!). After reminding the reader that the house will never be completely spotless, that schedules will never be perfect, and that things get out-of-whack, she gives details on how to cut down on those things as much as possible and how to get your home running smoothly.

The Family Manager (by Kathy Peele)

At the onset of reading this book, I was taken aback by her approach to homemaking as something professional…almost corporate-like. I wasn’t sure that I liked that, but couldn’t put my finger on why. As I read on, I realized that her main point was that homemaking is no less of a responsibility than being the CEO of a large organization - it takes discipline, devotion, organization, time-management and…well, you know. Throughout the books she gives instruction on how to manage your home in every respect: food, cleaning, schedules, recreation, and so on.

The Stay-At-Home Mom (by Donna Otto)

If you are wondering whether you should say goodbye to your 8-5 day job and become a stay-at-home mother, this book will motivate and inspire you to give your two week notice! Donna Otto does a wonderful job of explaining God’s call to the mother to disciple and care for her own children and to raise them up in the Lord (a task that no one could do as fervently and passionately as you could do). She really hones in on our ministry as mothers and encourages mothers to remember that “every glass of cool water” that we give to our children and “every scraped knee that we bandage”, we are doing it as if it were to Christ Himself and the Lord is well-pleased with that. She also gives wonderful advice on supporting your husband as a homemaker, being a mentor, managing your home, making money at home, and saving money at home.

Confessions of an Organized Homemaker: The Secrets of Uncluttering Your Home and Taking Control of Your Life (by Deniece Shofield)

This is a book that I will be getting a copy of for myself. Deneice Schofield is an organizing genius (at least, I think so!) and teaches solid organization principles that will get your home into shape and set up for smoother sailing. Not only does she teach you sound organization principles, but packs the book full of practical ways to get your home, schedule, and family organized.

Organizing Plain and Simple: A Ready Reference Guide with Hundreds of Solutions to Your Everyday Clutter Challenges (by Donna Smallin)

This is more of a resource book with step-by-steps on how to organize practically anything in your home that you can imagine. If you need to organize your closet, it’ll give you instructions on how to do that. In this book you’ll find how to organize each room in your home, your finances, time and home life. I found it to be a wonderful resource and can’t wait to organize some of the projects that I’ve been putting off!

Passionate Housewives, Desperate for God (see review here)

The Art of Homemaking (see review here)

I’ve seen other titles out there that I have not read yet, or been able to get my hands on, so if you’ve heard of or read any other good homemaking books, please comment!

Image from everystockphoto.com

Oriental Trading has their Christmas stuff clearanced, including lots of kids (12 ct.) craft kits for $.97!

*PLUS I have a FREE SHIPPING code: ASP824 (good till 5/15/08). Just type this in where it asks for the KEY CODE during checkout.

Go HERE while there is still a lot to choose from!

I ordered several of these. I love having my 4 yr. old daughter make something for her loved ones at Christmas time to give as gifts. It makes her feel good, and proud that she was able to give. And with these kits, she can give 12 gifts for under $1! That’s an awesome deal!

When friends of mine have become new moms, they all have asked this question at some point, “What kind of laundry detergent would you recommend?” Well, let me tell you…

When my daughter was born I did the Dreft thing: Expensive, and required lots of pre-treating of stains. Easy on baby’s skin, but not very impressive otherwise.

But when baby boy was born, I discovered

All Baby Liquid Laundry Detergent

I LOVE it! It’s much cheaper, and it works incredibly well on stains. Plus, I have never had a problem with it bothering my newborn’s skin. Using All has saved me lots of pre-treating time too. I usually only have to wash the clothes once and the stains are gone. If I have a really tough, set in stain, I will run it through the laundry first, and if it didn’t come out with the All alone, then I will pre-treat with Shout Gel Stick (with the scrubbing brush on top), another awesome product, and wash again. Or, I will treat the stain with some liquid All poured directly on the spot, and set for a few minutes to penetrate before washing again. If this doesn’t get the stain out, I don’t know what will!

Check out this article: Dreft Vs. All Baby Detergent. This author and I think a lot alike!

Also, a few times I had colors from new outfits bleed onto other clothing. I was so sad one day when one of my favorite baby outfits was seemingly ruined by bleeding colors!! But, I wouldn’t let it go without a fight. I soaked the spots with Clorox 2 for about 5 min., and washed the clothes again. To my delight the undesired stains were gone!! Yippee! So, give this a try before tossing your “ruined” clothing.

One more thing: If you have a white shirt with colored embroidery or something on it, and you need to bleach out a stain without ruining the colored areas, two things work well: Clorox 2; and a Clorox Bleach Pen, perfect for spot bleaching.

I am really good about putting leftovers into nice little containers and storing them in the fridge with every intention of making good use of it later. But, I’m SO bad about letting my leftovers get pushed to the back of the fridge to be forgotten for weeks! Since I started making my own baby food, and trying to live on $50/wk for groceries, I decided I had to do something that would help me be better about not wasting so much food.

What helps me to keep track of what is still good, and what can be thrown out?

LABELING!!

I have some small, blank labels that I like to use. I just write on the label the date of when the food was made, and stick it on the lid of the food container. That way when I’m digging in the fridge for a quick meal, I can see what leftovers are still edible, and what should be tossed, without having to try to remember when I made it!

I write on the label really small, so I can divide one into 5 or 6 little labels. This makes them last a really long time, and I don’t have a huge label to try to peel off the lid.

Two key elements to being truly frugal are:

Make it last longer

&

Use it all up

Use your things sparingly. See how you can stretch them to make them last even longer. And use it all up, completely.

The other week I realized my daughter’s toddler toothpaste was just about gone. Now, toddler toothpaste is pretty expensive (in my frugal mind), and hard to find deals on. I didn’t want to just go running out to buy another tube. So, realizing that there was probably a little more paste still inside, I cut the tube down the side and… BEHOLD! There was a bunch of toothpaste still sticking around inside. So, I just scraped some off onto my toothpaste, and put the cut tube into a Ziploc baggie to keep it fresh. This lasted me another week and a half, until yesterday I found my almost empty tube in the trashcan. I guess my husband didn’t catch on! Oh well… but it did keep me from having to buy more for a while.

So, before you throw something away, see if there might be at least one more usage out of it. Swish water around in containers like shampoo/conditioner, liquid laundry detergent, dish detergent and such. Shake up your empty chocolate syrup container with a little milk, to get the very last bit of chocolate out before you toss the bottle. Cut open tubes of products, and be amazed at how much more stuff is hiding inside!

Check out our frugality section for more great money saving tips!